Come with us to Africa to see something our Father in heaven is doing in Kenya's fourth largest city, Nakuru. Christ is raising up a testimony of love and truth among the helpless and downtrodden residents in the impoverished sections of this fast growing city. As we share the uncut gospel of the Kingdom of God with them, the changes happening in their lives has both encouraged ...and humbled us.

Monday, May 17, 2010

God's Lovely Recollections

Becoming Faultless

Last year we experienced a much loved Saint pass through the veil to be with the One who loves her the most. In our celebration of her life and passing, many of us got up and tried to put into words the wonderful times we had with this beloved Village grandmother;… Gammal.

Person after person stood to tell the funny and delightful stories that had so endeared her to all of us. Now it is not as though this dear person didn’t have her faults, just as we all do, and no one speaking that day tried to hide any of them. These faults once greatly disturbed the people she lived with, and at one time were a concern to the shepherds watching over her soul. Watching Christ change her as she continued walking in the light of His life found in His people, was encouraging. Although, as Christ worked with her, the faults did not disappear as much as they ceased to bother anyone anymore. The manner in which those same faults were brought up at the celebration though, was one of laughter and mirth. Her strong opinions and sometimes terse deliveries of those opinions had all become sources of wonderful amusement and happy reflections.

Later a sister and I were reflecting on all that was said and we realized that every fault that had bothered us about her had disappeared. Or better put; they had been somehow changed into lovely recollections of our dear sister in whom we all loved. There was no condemnation from anyone of those who knew her best. As we reflected on the end of her life, our final judgment was that through the work of Christ, she was ready to be received in heaven. Then it dawned on us that this is exactly what Christ said He would do. We were experiencing the reality of His words….

“Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling; and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.” (Jude1:24)

If we, the Body of Christ and assembly of the First born, didn't feel any condemnation for Gammal when we looked at the end of her physical life, how much more would our heavenly Father look upon her and see nothing but pleasure. She had become faultless. Or rather her faults had been changed into something with no condemnation attached. It was though the sin was removed from her “faults”.

Our ideas of being faultless are not His. Which means we will never quite know, on this side of the veil, what makes faults, faults… has been taken out of our or other’s …faults! What if the fault that so irritated me in another, or even in myself, doesn’t irritate God at all? What if what bothers me about others or worries me about myself is just another future “lovely recollections” of us?” Suffer me one more, what if. What if Christ actually did take away all my sin at the cross and when I was baptized everything really did become changed into “lovely recollections” of God about me? Now that is encouraging!

The only problem I see with this way of thinking is; if I am going to believe those things about me, I will have to start believing those same things about ….everyone else.

“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”(Romans 8:1)